The High Criminal Court in Manama has commenced the trial of a 12-member criminal gang accused of defrauding victims through a mobile payment application. The group allegedly targeted individuals, including a ministry employee who had BD468 stolen from her. The Public Prosecution has charged the defendants with conspiracy and aiding others in using electronic signatures to illegally access bank accounts and steal funds. The gang allegedly obtained victims’ bank verification codes through fraudulent means and used false pretenses to steal money.
One of the victims, a female ministry employee, testified that she received a call from an Asian man claiming to be a bank employee who needed to update her banking information. She provided her verification code and later discovered she had been defrauded of BD468. Similarly, a Ministry of Interior officer testified that information was received about a group of Asian individuals engaging in electronic fraud. The investigation led to the identification of the defendants involved in the scheme.
The officer revealed that the first and twelfth defendants allegedly led the gang, recruiting members and providing them with the necessary tools to commit the fraud. Their method involved searching for random mobile payment app numbers, recording valid ones, and obtaining the associated bank and account holder’s information. They would then contact victims, impersonate bank or official personnel, obtain their banking details, and steal their funds. The remaining defendants collected numbers, while the first and twelfth defendants defrauded victims.
The ministry employee victim was contacted by the first defendant, who impersonated a bank employee and requested data updates, subsequently stealing BD468 and transferring the money to another individual. Examination of the first defendant’s phone revealed communication with the victim on the day of the incident. The second defendant stated that he was introduced to the seventh defendant, who along with the first defendant recruited them to contact individuals and obtain the mobile payment numbers. The fourth defendant mentioned he arrived in Bahrain with the eighth defendant, who said he would work selling sweets for the twelfth defendant.
In conclusion, the trial of the 12-member criminal gang accused of defrauding victims through a mobile payment application has begun in the High Criminal Court in Manama. The defendants are charged with conspiracy and aiding others in illegally accessing bank accounts and stealing funds. The gang allegedly obtained victims’ bank verification codes through fraudulent means and used false pretenses to steal money. Victims, including a ministry employee, testified about being defrauded by the defendants, who impersonated bank employees to obtain banking details. The investigation led to the identification of the defendants involved in the scheme, with the first and twelfth defendants allegedly leading the gang and recruiting members to commit fraud.
